Wednesday, December 09, 2015

Entertaining the kids

I was
talking to a friend last week. It was just after the thanks giving holidays. We
spoke about how we spent the holidays, the thanksgiving shopping, family time
etc. Of all the things he said, one really struck my mind. When speaking about how
he and his family spent the holidays, he ended a sentence with “……we were home
for the rest of the day, entertaining our kids”. I had not asked him what
he meant by “entertaining kids”, but that sentence had been at the back of my
mind since then. I thought about this several times though not really focusing
on it. My thoughts had been mostly on the lines of - What does entertaining
kids mean? How do we really entertain kids? How do I know if the kids were
entertained? Etc.

I was at
the bus stop with my daughter this morning. My daughter was telling me about a
game she learnt at school and wanted me to play with her as we waited for the
bus. She explained me the rules the first time but I did not
understand. She explained the rules the second time but I still could not catch
it all. Before starting to explain the third time she said, “oh papa, you
should come to my school and see my friends and I play this game”. THAT
WAS IT! That sentence of Akshara struck the right cord in my head. It filled
the missing piece of the thought I had at the back of my mind since last week –
“entertaining kids”.

The
school bus arrived in the meanwhile and I bid goodbye to Akshara and started
towards my house. My mind raced to process the new found data; the missing link
of my puzzle. Akshara’s comment had provided that missing link.

How do
you entertain the kids? Be a kid.

Wasn’t it
obvious? Every parent knows that cartoons, video games, TV… can keep the kids
occupied only for some time. Once the show ends, the real show begins, for the
parents. The parents now need to find something else to keep the kids occupied.
Instead of the TV, take the kids to a playground where there are other kids
playing. That will be a whole different show. That show never stops.
Parents have to literally beg the kids to stop playing and come back
home. Because the entertainment there is not cartoons or video games; it’s the
kids. Kids are the kid’s best entertainers. If you really want to entertain the
kids, be a kid. Keep the logic out and play the games they play. Play as a kid.

‘Entertaining
kids’; it’s not easy. This is the toughest part of parenting. As a parent, I
have experienced this first hand for a long time. But until today, I had never
thought of this so much. With what I put together in my head today, this
sentence means much more to me now. ‘Entertaining kids’ has found a special
respect in my heart.